Allied Navy
Before widespread naval standardization, the Allied Navy was a collection of ships from all the national navies. = Escorts = Thunderchild-class PT Boat Main Article: Torpedo Boat Archerfish-class Patrol Boat Main Article: Patrol Boat Hispaniola-class Hydrofoil Main Article: Hydrofoil ''Vigilant''-class Patrol Gunboat At the start of the Second World War, the various navies of the Allies found themselves at a loss against the submarine fleets of the Soviet Union. Stealthy wolfpacks of submarines prowled the Atlantic for vulnerable merchant ships, depriving the European Allies of needed supplies. Escorts were needed to protect these ships and their cargo as they plied the sea lanes--escorts that were at the same time needed to conduct naval operations against the Soviet Navy. Against the vast armada of the Soviet Union, the European navies found themselves strapped of resources. With the limited ships at their disposal, more had to be made available by any means necessary. Merchant ships were armed with hidden weaponry to unleash upon unsuspecting Soviet wolfpacks. Ships were pumped out by shipyards at breakneck speeds, in order to replace those lost. Gunboats and other naval assets were withdrawn from European colonies in East Asia and elsewhere, to fight in the Mediterranean and Indian Ocean. To supplant this, entire new classes of ships were created. Ships like the Vigilant-class patrol gunboats were churned out to help sate the Allies' demand for ships. Equipped with a depth charge thrower, the Vigilant-class was meant to serve as an affordable anti-submarine escort, with its 100mm naval gun, it could also attack surfaced submarines or other warships. The design was not without weaknesses; a single torpedo or shell could sink or heavily damage one of these gunboats, and destroyers like the Ironclad-class could combat Soviet submarines more effectively. Despite this, the Vigilant-class had one redeeming virtue; it was cheap and extremely mass producible, allowing dozens of gunboats to be produced for every destroyer or cruiser. Produced in the hundreds, these gunboats found themselves protecting convoys all across the Atlantic. When the Second World War ended, however, there was no more need for the Vigilant-class. Following the war, most were quickly decommissioned and sold off to any who would have them. Many have ended up with cash strapped countries in need of ships for their navies. = Submarines and Submersibles = GSV-53 Razor-class Submersible Main Article: Razor Sub =Frigates= San Juan-class Frigate Main Article: Frigate Raytheon-class Missile Frigate Main Article: Frigate TT3 Payne-class Escort Frigate Main Article: Subhunter Frigate =Destroyers= Ironclad-class Destroyer Main Article: Destroyer Michell-class Assault Destroyer Main Article: Assault Destroyer =Bombardment Ships= Jutland-class Battlecruiser Main Article: Cruiser After WWI, the nations of the world, from the United States to Italy, agreed to limit the number of weapons produced, especially naval ships (after all, World War One was the war to end all wars.) The construction of new battleships was banned outright. The United Kingdom had a seaborne empire to patrol, though, and skirted the treaties by making a "Battlecruiser" that outgunned many dreadnoughts. Rising aggression from the Soviet Union meant no one truly minded, and it ruled the seas during World War II. The Jutland-class was fast, powerful, and easy to create. These qualities and more made the Jutland the standard for the new Allied Navy, and up till today the Jutland-class battlecruisers still see extensive service with the Allied navy. Pennsylvania-class Battleship Restrictions on battleships were broken first by the Soviets, and the treaties were null. The United States was the first to take advantage of it, planning and laying down an entire class of fast battleships that were a symbol of American might (and excess). With an impressive armament, thick armour, and considerable speed, the American Pennsylvania-class battleships proved worthy contenders to the Soviet Dreadnought-class. Their primary armament of three main gun turrets mounting three 16 inch guns each were capable of delivering punishing shore bombardment or sinking a comparable battleship. Smaller dual purpose guns could engage other ships at shorter ranges, while 40mm and 20mm AA guns defended against aerial threats joined by the dual purpose weapons. Indeed, the Pennsylvania-class surpassed British Jutland cruisers in firepower and durability, serving with devastating effectiveness throughout the war, and while not possessing as many guns as the Dreadnoughts, had larger guns. However, their high cost meant that the only country that could afford them was an industrial giant unmarred by war. Following the war, the Pennsylvania-class remained in service with the Allies, and underwent a major refit in the early 1960s. The battleships were refitted to allow them to carry and launch the new BGM-33 "Hatchet" cruise missiles, increasing their bombardment capability, and Icarus CIWS turrets and anti-ship rocket launchers were also mounted, replacing the old AA guns and several of the smaller guns. Additionally, the Pennsylvania-class also received upgrades in electronics, with the fitting of radar systems to enhance their effectiveness. The refit proved timely, as World War III broke out again, though this time aircraft carriers had superceded battleships to some extent. Nevertheless, the Pennsylvania-class battleships served with distinction throughout the war, particularly in the Pacific theatre, where they saw considerable action against the Imperial Japanese Navy. = Aircraft Carriers = Enterprise-class Light Aircraft Carrier The aircraft carrier was developed during World War 1, when aircraft where flimsy and light and could take off from small fields, and so converted cruisers and battleships could sufficiently fill the role. This allowed naval fleets to bring their own air support and provided the edge in naval engagements. However, as the years went on and aircraft performance increased, so did their size and weight, making the design of aircraft carriers increasingly more difficult. Furthermore, the development of jet aircraft complicated matters further. Compared to piston engined aircraft, jets had superior performance, but at the same time they were bigger, heavier, and demanded more maintenance and fuel. Attempts to have jet aircraft supported by existing fleet carriers soon ran into problems, and it was soon quickly found that a carrier which could have supported 90 propeller driven aircraft could hope at best to support a quarter of that number of new generation jet aircraft or perhaps half or even three quarters with ski-ramps and steam catapults and angled flight decks, which would also require new technology. A newer, bigger, more expensive aircraft carrier would be needed to support an equivalent number of jet aircraft. Conceptual plans for a massive "supercarrier", weighing in excess of some 90,000 tonnes, were drawn up. Projections, however, indicated that the first of these supercarriers would not be ready to go until 1958, and certainly not until a suitable power source was found. A four year plus wait, however, was unacceptable to Allied High Command; at the very least, something would be needed to fill the gap during that time. An alternative was presented, when Allied High Command heard of the promising developments in the field of VTOL aircraft. In theory, VTOL aircraft would be able to operate from any flat space, thus negating the need for long runways. This in turn meant that aircraft carriers designed to support VTOLs could be made smaller and more cost-effective , essentially entrusting light carriers to be the primary arm of the fleet, a stopgap alternative that sounded attractive to the resource-strapped Allies at the time, while the supercarrier and new fleet carriers were constructed. The construction of the first two of many Enterprise-class hulls was approved, and the hulls laid down in January 1954. Enterprise and her sister ship, Hornet, were both commissioned in early February 1954, not one month after the first deployment of the new VTOL Hawker Jumpjet. In spite of the fact that they were meant as little more than a stopgap, the Enterprise-class proved to be more effective than most people had initially believed, striking at both naval and land based targets and denting Soviet naval power with their complement of 16 "Sea Hawkers", Hawker Jumpjets modified slightly for naval duties that would operate in packs of four. The Enterprise-class remained in service after the war ended, in light of its effectiveness, as well as the continuing problems with the lack of a suitable power source for the supercarrier project. In fact, many more batches of Enterprise-class carriers were ordered, in addition to those in in service and already under construction. The Sea Hawker, however, proved a poor fit for carrier operations, having been hastily modified for them. To this end, the Sea Hawker would be replaced by the F/A-8 Hornet. Compared to the Sea Hawker, the Hornet was far better suited for naval operations, with greater operational range and fuel efficiency, fold wings to free up hangar space, and a variety of other improvements. In addition, an Enterprise-class could operate 24 Hornets, as compared to 16 Sea Hawkers. The Enterprise-class continues to see service up to this day, though the Allies have generally kept them in reserve, instead using the more modern Von Esling-class aircraft carriers for frontline action and only deploying the Enterprise-class when more flexible support is required than what the Von Esling-class can provide. Exocet-class Ultralight Aircraft Carrier An interesting hiccup in naval history, the Exocet-class was an attempt to spread Allied influence to places overlooked by the Soviets. By empowering smaller nations with "Allied Aircraft Carriers", nations that didn't have a big navy could tout their own piece of the naval pie. While the normal contract for an exportable carrier went out, the Branche Home Aeronautics Company, known for ultralight and kit planes offered something outlandish. They offered a conversion plan that could be used on over 12 different currently serving cruiser, transport, auxiliary, and passenger ship types. The conversion kit included the bare minimum to turn a hull into a working aircraft carrier. On a trial, the first Exocet-class was bought by the Armada de México (Mexican Navy). The ADM's first carrier, the AVN Quetzalcóatl, was made in record time. With their first sale, the Exocet-class started to pick up steam with many smaller nations, with sales to nations including Egypt, South Korea and Argentina. Despite doing well in sales, the Exocet-class has numerous flaws. The most obvious is its lack of compatibility with jet aircraft, with its wooden decks being a fire hazard for a jet engine's heated exhaust. Others flaws include a small hangar that can support no more than fourteen planes at most. It is also not meant to be used against anything resembling a modern fleet, and is only really any good as a deterrent. The nature of the conversion can also cause structural problems. A number of Exocet-class carriers are still in limited use, though, mostly by poorer nations who are unable to afford better. Halcyon-class Aircraft Carrier Post-war plans for the Allied Navy included a massive, 90,000 plus tonne aircraft carrier that was to become the new pride of the Navy. Theoretically, this "supercarrier" would be able to support up to 90 jet aircraft, and would be a formidable power projection tool. It was dubbed the ANV Victory. If it had actually been built, that is. Although most had agreed that the supercarrier was the only way to go forward in the long run when the plan was first put forward in late 1952, the unexpected effectiveness of the far smaller Enterprise-class aircraft carriers, meant as a stopgap, made a fair number of the Allies sway in their opinion. Furthermore, continued problems with the lack of a suitable power source delayed the Victory's construction, and its launched date was pushed back repeatedly. In the meantime, to make up for the vacuum, other options were explored, and an increasing number of people began to favour these alternative options, until the Victory was scrapped entirely in 1958 to focus on the smaller Liberty class supercarrier. One of the stopgaps put forward was that of a smaller, conventionally powered aircraft carrier. While it was to be larger than the Enterprise-class, it would still be smaller than the behemoth Victory. With the Victory's cancellation, the newly christened Halcyon-class was green lighted, and work was begun on the first carrier not long after the Victory's scrapping. ANV Halcyon was completed in a month after it was laid down in SPAM based shipyards, with its dozens of compatriots following it in the next two years. However, the Halcyon-class had run into problems by this time. True, it represented an increase in capability over the smaller and older Enterprise-class, being able to carry the new Apollo fighters and Vindicator bombers, then the most advanced planes in the Allied arsenal. However, the Halcyon had proven to be far more expensive than initial projections, leading to increasing concerns over cost, and in truth a good deal of people thought that the Halcyon-class wasn't all that much of an improvement over the Enterprise. Nevertheless, plans for the construction of more Halcyon-class aircraft carriers continued, for lack of a viable alternative. What finally halted the construction of more Halcyon-class carriers was not budget concerns (though that was a contributing factor), but developments in drone technology. A German-led breakthrough in UCAVs in 1962 led to the cancellation of the remaining twenty Halcyon-class carriers still under construction, and focus was shifted to the newly blueprinted Von Esling-class. Nevertheless, the already built Halcyon-class ships were nowhere near obsolete, and they would go on to see service throughout World War III. Von Esling-class Aircraft Carrier Main Article: Aircraft Carrier = Other Ships = Assault Lander Main Article: Assault Lander Alert-class Icebreaker Main Article: Alert Icebreaker ISP-38C Swan Seaplane Artillery Main Article: Swan Amphibious Plane Habakkuk-class Seaborne Fortress The Habakkuk class Seaborne Fortress is a unique ship in the Allied arsenal. Although it rivals the Empire's floating fortresses in size, it is relatively cheap to manufacture by comparison, with each ship costing around the same as two Von Esling class Aircraft Carriers. The low cost of the Habakkuk is due to the fact that it is literally just a giant iceberg. The Habakkuk is made of 95% pykrete, a strong and durable material made of frozen H2O, sawdust and some other ingredients, which makes the Habakkuk nigh indestructible. The Habakkuk is propelled by 3 Ironside class hulls embedded in it during construction, and is capable of cruising at a steady 3 knots. During trips that take it far south, the Habakkuk also has cryo generators that help the ship to keep cool in the heat. The Habakkuk serves a unique role in the Allied Navy. They act as giant floating islands in military operations, enabling the Allies to construct airbases and naval yards in the middle of the ocean, giving the Allies the edge in naval engagements. The Allies also use them to mount amphibious assaults, stationing entire brigades on Habakkuks prior to launching them into the sea and towards the beaches. They also used to serve as air superiority projection platforms in troublesome areas such as Vietnam and China. It is unlikely that the Habakkuk will be replaced soon, as it continues to play an important role in the Allied arsenal, and will likely remain in service until someone finds a way to create an island out of nowhere in the middle of the ocean. Category:Lore